Touchdown!!!!

DAY ??: I've lost count. It's been about a week. No real exercise has been conducted. I've conceded that I'm pretty much just too lazy. On a positive note, I have made a right step in another direction. I'm a huge fan of American Football and have been for something approaching 15 years. Recently I've just managed to get a role as a coaching assistant for a University team here in the UK. Which is great. But I've also spotted that there is a gap in the market when it comes to football. And that is for someone who loves the game, to make intelligent comments on it. And by intelligent comments I mean not crowning a Superbowl champion in October (not even crowning the divisional champions!). I mean not writing off Tom Brady and The Patriots as a bust just because they didn't put 40 points on the board in every game. And I mean not calling for Jeff Fischers head in Tennessee just because they're 0-6. The fact is, Tennessee have been rocked by some serious injuries to their pro bowl secondary. Now granted Chris Johnson is struggling because he is asked to carry too much of the load (especially up the middle which is the territory of LenDale White). But as for Kerry Collins, nothing is wrong with him. The fact is he's never been that exceptional at Tennessee and wasn't supposed to be. They're supposed to run the ball and play great D, leaving Collins to fill in the gaps. To ask him to magically transform into Bret Favre is like asking the Raiders management to trade JaMarcus Russell. It's simply not gonna happen. Should they now play Vince Young? Yes. Next year the guy will be sinking his teeth into a large sum of money and they need to know now whether he has the capability to carry this team through difficult times. As for their opponents last Sunday, The New Engalnd Patriots, it's rock and roll time. Kind of. Yes they put 59 on the board. But it was against a depleted and defeated looking Titans. Hopes that they will blaze through the NFL undefeated from here on in may be a touch premature. But a key component of their offence is back and established; Wes Welker. Because while Randy Moss streaks down the field and makes the eyes of Madden video game makers light up, it's still Welker who wins games for the Patriots. Yes, Wes Welker. Without him, the reality is that Brady and Moss are just another one-two passing combo, like many in the league. And another combination, the tried and tested blitz + double coverage, can take them away just as easily as the rest. The key is that instead of a running game to supplement, the Patriots have Welker. Safe hands, toughness on the underneath routes and an eye for gaps in the zone make Welker the cog that keeps the machine running. Now he's back, it's fun times all round in New England. For now at least. Am I crowning them as Superbowl Champions? Nope. Divisional champions? Nope. What about the Saints in the NFC South? Nope. "But they beat the GIANTS!!! For Gods Sake Chris, what else do they have to do prove they're good enough to win a Superbowl ?!!!" Uhm, win a Superbowl. Yes they beat the Giants. The same Giants who hadn't faced a team with a winning record all season. And the same Giants who practically handed them the game. Now, don't get all upset on me. Yes I do think the Saints are a good team. Brees is an excellent QB. But I'm not ready to jump on the bandwagon just yet. Let's go back to Sunday and the Giants game. Saints jump to a quick 14-0 lead. No arguments there. Nice to see Shockey get a TD against the Giants. But then with 11 seconds left in the 1st quarter, Manning chucks the rock downfield to the endzone looking for Steve Smith and he ...... drops it! Well, to be more precise he just cant quite reach it properly. Either way, that could have been a nice score for the Giants and might have changed the game a little. Next Saints possession they come right back and score a touchdown. Their was an opportunity for the defender to make a play in the endzone and if he does that's a pick and the ball goes back the other way. Still credit to Brees and Meecham (I don't know how to spell his name. Unlucky.) for hooking up. So Saints up 20-3 (failed conversion) when the Giants comeback and get a touchdown (credit now to Ahmad Bradshaw, great RB). 20-10 Saints. But now it gets interesting. Brees throws from around midfield down to the 10 incomplete. But wait! That little yellow saviour comes out for the Saints as what appears on replay to just be incidental contact suddenly becomes pass interference and the Saints are on the 10. From that they nail a TD and now the game is 27-10. That's pretty lucky. Giants come back and hit a TD themselves so now it's 27-17. Saints get the ball, drive down field... but get stopped and turnover on downs. And now the Giants give it away again. Out of timeouts they fail to run a clock stopping play and have to rush to get a play off. Manning sacked, ball loose, Saints recover and convert the possession into a TD. 34-17 Saints at halftime. Now again, to reiterate, it's not the Saints fault that New York dropped some serious clangers. But it is worth looking at. Without those mistakes the game changes. The score is tighter, the pressure mounts a little. Credit where it's due to the Saints for taking full advantage of the opportunities. But just don't expect the same sort of favours in the post season. And certainly not in the Superbowl.